Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi on Sunday matched his best finish of the season in the World Rally Championship, while a dramatic climax to Rally Australia ensured that the battle for the drivers’ world title would be extended to France next month.
Accompanied by British co-driver Scott Martin in his Abu Dhabi Citroen Total DS3, the UAE driver rounded off a strong performance in one of the most demanding events of the 2013 WRC series to secure ninth place.
It equalled his finish in Portugal in April and was his third WRC points-scoring performance of the current campaign, and arguably the best.
The punishing nature of the twisting gravel roads in and around Coffs Harbour, north of Sydney, that make up Rally Australia was highlighted on the final stage when a puncture in his Citroen Total Abu Dhabi DS3 saw Finland’s Mikko Hirvonen lose second place to Belgium’s Thierry Neuville.
Neuville’s late promotion meant that the rally winner, Sebastien Ogier, was kept waiting for the WRC drivers’ crown, which he can secure on home soil by scoring one point in Rallye de France next month.
The final stage of the day also brought disappointment for Sheikh Khalid’s other Citroën teammate, Northern Ireland’s Kris Meeke, who finished the section but was immediately forced to retire with a broken rear suspension.
Meeke had restarted the event following major repairs to his car after he had rolled and lost fourth place the previous day.
Facing the most difficult road conditions by starting first or second on the road throughout, Sheikh Khalid coped well over the final leg’s six stages, with only Meeke starting ahead of him.
“Starting in first or second position on the road didn’t make my job any easier, especially on the first loop of stages where there was always a lot of loose dirt,” the Emirati said.
“I tried different driving styles and we worked on the set-up and, in the end, it was good to finish where I did.”
Ogier, 29, was dominant throughout, but his title celebrations were put on hold thanks to Hirvonen’s puncture.
The extra points for Neuville, allied to two bonus points for taking second in the final Power Stage, meant Ogier fell just one point short of clinching the title after four days of gravel competition covering 352.36 kilometres on the northern coast of New South Wales.
“The team told me at the finish line that I had missed the title by one point because Mikko had a problem,” Ogier said.
“I tried my best. The most important thing is that we did another perfect rally and we thought it was OK for the title, but it can’t be written down yet.”
Ogier has three rounds remaining in which to secure the world crown.
“When you do a perfect job like that you expect to get it, but it’s going to happen soon,” he said.
Hirvonen was mystified by his mishap.
“I have no idea,” he said. “I honestly have no idea why we had a puncture. We were in the middle of the road the whole stage.”
